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Star Wars: "The Star Wars" Treatment 1973
SOURCES "The Primordial Star Wars" by Randy & Jean-Marc Lofficier; Starlog 120, July 1987 Star Wars: The Annotated Screenplays by Laurent Bouzereau, Del Rey 1997 Star Wars Year by Year: A Visual Chronicle by Ryder Windham, DK 2010 The Making of Star Wars by JW Rinzler, Del Rey 2007 DEVELOPMENT 10 page handwrittenThe Making of Star Wars by JW Rinzler, Del Rey 2007, Page 9 and 13 or 14Star Wars Year by Year: A Visual Chronicle by Ryder Windham, DK 2010, Page 29 page typed treatment written in May 1973"The Primordial Star Wars" by Randy & Jean-Marc Lofficier; Starlog 120, July 1987, page 17 Star Wars: The Annotated Screenplays by Laurent Bouzereau, Del Rey 1997, Page 3The Making of Star Wars by JW Rinzler, Del Rey 2007, Page 10 Plot structure inspired by Akira Kurasawa's The Hidden Fortress''Star Wars: The Annotated Screenplays by Laurent Bouzereau, Del Rey 1997, Page 9 PLOT Takes place in the 33rd Century during a period of civil war in the galaxyStar Wars: The Annotated Screenplays by Laurent Bouzereau, Del Rey 1997, Page 5 Opening (transcription): " Deep Space. The eerie blue-green planet of Aquilae slowly drifts into view. A small speck, orbiting the planet, glints in the light of a nearby star. Suddenly a sleek fighter-type space craft settles ominously into the foreground moving swiftly toward the orbiting speck. Two more fighters silently maneuver into battle formation behind the first; and then three more craft glide into..." Opens with 6 starfighters and a giant space fortressStar Wars: The Annotated Screenplays by Laurent Bouzereau, Del Rey 1997, Page 7 Imperial Space pursuit of rebel Princess in orbit of planet Aquilae; the Princess - traveling with several loyal retainers and a treasure is trying to reach OphuchiStar Wars: The Annotated Screenplays by Laurent Bouzereau, Del Rey 1997, Page 14; there is a reward posted for her capture General Luke Skywalker travels with Princess to protect her Skywalker and Princess crash on Aquilae"The Primordial Star Wars" by Randy & Jean-Marc Lofficier; Starlog 120, July 1987, page 18; two terrified bickering Imperial bureaucrats have escaped the space fortress to the planet's surface; Skywalker - disguised as a farmer - takes bureaucrats prisoner Skywalker and the Princess travel with a treasury of valuable Aura Spice that the bureaucrats hope to stealStar Wars: The Annotated Screenplays by Laurent Bouzereau, Del Rey 1997, Page 87 They all make their way across the wastelands of Aquilae to Spaceport Gordon, They arrive at the ruins of a temple, where ten rebel boys are hiding; the boys defend them against a large beast and Skywalker recruits them to accompany themStar Wars: The Annotated Screenplays by Laurent Bouzereau, Del Rey 1997, Page 45 Skywalker, a bureaucrat, and one of the boys go to the cantina; In Gordon cantina, they encounter a variety of weird and exotic aliens drinking and laughing at the bar; Skywalker questions the bartender to find a rebel contact; after attempting to avoid a confrontation, Skywalker uses his lazer sword on some unruly patrons "The Primordial Star Wars" by Randy & Jean-Marc Lofficier; Starlog 120, July 1987, page 18 for bullying the boy, slicing the arm off of one and slashing another from chin to groin Skywalker and the others make contact with the rebels but are discovered by a spy and reported to the GovernorStar Wars: The Annotated Screenplays by Laurent Bouzereau, Del Rey 1997, Page 54 A crooked starship Captain tries to catch Skywalker and his companions in a trap; they steal his ship and escape They blend into the Imperial fleet but are stopped by a patrol and have to run to keep from being boarded Skywalker and his companions are chased by Imperials; they destroy several Imperial ships in a dogfight and hide behind (or on) (or avoid) an asteroid; the ship is hit and they plummet to the planet Yavin After the crash they split up and are being watched by a giant furry alien; some of the boys make camp while others travel to a city with the Princess and the bureaucrats discover one of the boys is missing and they begin to look for himStar Wars: The Annotated Screenplays by Laurent Bouzereau, Del Rey 1997, Page 67 Planet Yavin is populated with furry aliens that ride bird-like creatures; they capture the Princess and the bureaucrats for the Empire Skywalker battles the aliens riding the bird-like creatures, defeating them with his blaster, but crashing one of the bird-like creatures into the enemy camp; (this scene was inspired by a similar sequence in ''The Hidden Fortress where the Samurai General crashes his horse into an enemy camp) Skywalker fights the leader of the aliens and slices him in half with his lazer sword The aliens throw General Skywalker over a cliff into a crevasse; he appears to fall to his death but actually grabs a vine and swings to safety Because he apparently returns from the dead, the aliens believe Skywalker is a god The Chief alienThe Making of Star Wars by JW Rinzler, Del Rey 2007, Page 11 aids Skywalker as he attempts to rescue the Princess and the bureaucrats; their alien captors deliver them to Imperial troops and they are taken away in a speed tank Skywalker's alien guide takes him to a friendly farmer who is married to an alien supports their opposition to the Empire; the boys are at the farm already They learn that the Princess has been taken to Alderaan, the heart of the Empire The farmer leads Skywalker and the boys to an Imperial outpost, where they learn what's become of the Princess General Skywalker leads the boys in a squadron of devil fighters to rescue the Princess Disguised as Imperial rangers, Skywalker and the boys breach the prison compound where the Princess is being held and rescue her The story ends with a great parade on Ophuchi to celebrate the Princess' safe return; the bureaucrats receive rewards while Skywalker and the boys are made the Princess' special guardStar Wars: The Annotated Screenplays by Laurent Bouzereau, Del Rey 1997, Page 120 Ending (transcription): "The princess' arrival on Ophuchi is celebrated by a huge parade, honoring the general and his small band. The princess' uncle, ruler of Ophuchi, rewards the bureaucrats, who for the first time see the princess revealed as her true goddess-like self... After the ceremony is over, and the festivities have ended, the drunken bureaucrats stagger down an empty street arm in arm realizing that they have been adventuring with demigods." QUOTES George Lucas: "The part that was most the interesting in ''Hidden Fortress ''was that it was told from the point of view of the farmers, and not from the point of view of the princess. I liked that idea."Star Wars: The Annotated Screenplays by Laurent Bouzereau, Del Rey 1997, Page 10 George Lucas: "In film school I tended away from storytelling; I just didn't like it - and it grew from a point of dislike to a point of real hatred. Then I forced my way back into storytelling. I though that maybe I hated it so much because I couldn't do it. This is one of the reasons why with ''Star Wars ''I want to attempt a storytelling film."The Making of Star Wars by JW Rinzler, Del Rey 2007, Page 16 References Category:StarWars1973